forgive me, i'm finding my wings
by bookishgypsy
Summary: It's a shame she had to lose so much to be able to see what she had right in front of her. Fallon/Liam. Oneshot.


Yikes. This started as a 'should've been' fluff piece with Liam and Fallon getting together at that hotel in Idaho from a post I saw on Tumblr where someone asked for it and I jumped in and said 'sure, maybe i'll write that.' But, I couldn't justify Liam _not_ calling her out on her shit. It wasn't fair to either of them to jump straight into something serious. So, this came to be and it's a really long piece and probably makes no sense but here it is and I hope you like it.

This is very Fallon centric, but of course it's totally a Fallon/Liam story. It takes place directly after 2x11.

Title comes from Miranda Lambert's ' _Well-Rested_.' And the lyrics at the beginning are from LeAnn Rimes' ' _What Have I Done_.'

And I think that's all you need to know?

Reviews make me really happy.

/ /

 _I don't know what I've become_

 _I need to get back to where I'm from_

 _I'm gonna smash every mirror in this empty house_

 _Cause like you I don't wanna see myself_

 _/ /_

She can't remember the last time something hurt _this much._

Maybe when her mom left? But even then, she doesn't remember being _hurt,_ necessarily. She just remembers being _angry_ at her. For just up and leaving her kids behind without hardly any remorse.

Hell, she broke off an engagement, a relationship with the guy she thought she she was supposed to spend the rest of her life with and she wasn't even that upset. Did she even cry? She can't remember crying. If she's honest with herself, it wasn't even hurt she felt at all after that relationship went to hell.

It was _relief._

Like she could finally breathe again.

Like the thousand pound weight that was sitting on her chest had finally been lifted off her.

It's nothing compared to the pain she's feeling now. There's this tightness in her chest and a dullness looming over her constantly like a grey cloud and she's not sure she's ever felt this feeling before. Was this…is this was heartbreak felt like?

She spends the first few days after her trip to the mountains holed up in her room and she's thankful that everyone lets her have her space for a while. Until, the last person she thought would come to check on her does.

Kirby.

Offering her condolences and that if she needed a friend, if she needed anything - she'd be there.

It's a wild turn of events, she never pictured herself being _friends_ with Kirby Anders.

But it's kind of what they are now. She thinks.

She appreciates Kirby for checking on her, she does, but the only thing she can hear over and over again is: _I can't stand the sight of you, I can't stand the sight of you, I can't stand the sight of you._

It plays on loop in her mind like a broken record. A constant reminder of how badly she's fucked up one of the best things that's ever happened to her.

 _You are not the same person I fell in love with._

When did everything go so wrong?

When did she lose herself?

 _/ /_

There's no knock on her door this time before Kirby comes barging in with a tray full of breakfast food and two cups of coffee saying, "You need to eat something. It's been five days."

"I'm not hungry."

"I don't care, I'm not leaving this room until you've had a decent breakfast."

Fallon doesn't bother replying as Kirby makes herself comfortable on the left side of her bed, crawling under the covers and placing that tray full of food in front of them. Fallon grabs the coffee and sips it quietly, slowly, trying to keep her emotions at bay with Kirby right next to her.

God, when did she become _that_ person?

"Look, I even brought a whole plate of bacon. You're favorite."

It might be the first thing that's brought a semblance of a smile to her face since everything went to hell in Idaho. She snatches a strip of the greasy meat from the red head, letting herself indulge in it's saltiness.

There's a comfortable silence that surrounds them while they eat, and Fallon has to admit - it feels good to eat something besides chocolate. It isn't until the two of them stop reaching for more food that Fallon has the nerve to speak up.

"He's right, you know."

"Hmm?"

"Liam," she says softly. "He was right. I'm not the same person I was when I met him."

"People change, Fallon."

"No, it's not like that. It's like…there was so many expectations put on me. Of how I should be, how I should act," she trails off in volume as she ends her thought. "I just feel like I don't even know who I am anymore."

"I'm not sure I follow."

"I let him mold me into what _he_ wanted me to be," she mutters quietly. Kirby sits silently besides the brunette. She didn't ask who. Fallon thinks the girl beside her must just _know_ who she's referring to, because she's oddly quiet and Fallon takes it as a signal to continue her train of thoughts aloud. "I was ready to start my own company. I was ready to take on the world and nothing was going to stop me. When did that stop? When did I just _give up_?"

Kirby doesn't reply once again, which Fallon's okay with. It was kind of nice to just….get these things off her chest without someone judging her or anything. She wasn't really asking Kirby anyways, she realizes; she was asking herself.

It's too bad she didn't have the answer.

"I just wish I knew how to find myself again."

 _/ /_

She hears a knock.

It's soft and subtle but it feels like someone's banging on drums directly next to her.

She just wants to be left alone and be left alone with all her thoughts and feelings. Was that too much to ask? Apparently, it was, considering everyone kept coming and going as if they pleased.

"Go away."

But the door swings open anyway, the culprit slowly making their way inside her room and then settling themselves on the foot of her bed.

"What do you want, Sam?"

"To check on you," he says. "How are you doing?"

"Never been better," she plasters on the best smile she can. "Thanks for stopping by. You can go now."

"Fallon, I'm serious. It's been a week," his tone changes then, she hears it. "Are you okay?"

"No, Sam. I'm not okay. Is that what you want to hear?"

"No, but I'm glad you're being honest with yourself for once."

"Look at me, Sam," she gestures to all the tissues on her bed, the empty martini glasses on her night stand. "This is pathetic."

"It's not pathetic, Fallon. You're heartbroken. It's okay to just…let yourself feel."

"Well, I don't really like how it feels."

"You're not supposed to _like_ it. Things will get better. With time, it'll get better. Trust me."

 _/ /_

It's on the seventh day that she finally gets herself out of bed, puts on her best outfit, and does her makeup to perfection.

She's done enough sulking.

It makes her feel a little better, putting herself together. It makes her feel a little more like herself again, but something is still off.

Something's still wrong, still missing.

She's just trying to search for what that is.

 _/ /_

"He texted me, you know."

Fallon's eyes find Sam's after that statement. They're having breakfast, as they usually do, with the house's entirety coming and going as they please. It's just the two of them this morning, and she's kind of grateful. She doesn't think she can take all the eyes that keep wandering over her, checking on her, making sure she's not going to break.

She has to admit she's curious about Liam, but she's just not sure if she can take whatever it is Sam's about to say next.

"He told me not to tell you," Fallon can't help but smirk at that. Of course he did. "But, I don't think he even believed for a second that I _wouldn't_ tell you, so maybe he wanted you to know all along."

"What…what did he say?"

Sam takes in a breath before supplying his friend with, "He asked if you were okay. He wanted to make sure you were okay."

Fallon just nods silently, looking down at her plate on the dining room table, the only sound her fork scraping against the ceramic.

"He still cares about you, Fallon. He still loves you."

Her eyes start to burn and she feels the tears start to pool in the corner of her eyes and she hates the effect he's managed to have over her. She moves her head left to right and says, "He hates me."

"No, Fallon, you've got it all wrong." Sam wraps his arm around her, pulling her a little closer and she can't deny the comfort kind of feels good. "He doesn't hate you. He hates that you've lost yourself. He hates that he can't see the person he fell in love with anymore. It's _because_ he loves you." She's silent for a bit, Sam letting her take it all in before adding, "If it's any help at all…I did hear through the grapevine that he broke it off with Ashley."

And just like that, at the drop of a hat, this _hopeful_ feeling starts bubbling up inside her.

 _/ /_

She texts him against her better judgement.

 _You were right. I'm really sorry._

She doesn't expect a response.

She doesn't deserve one.

 _/ /_

She's doing….better.

She still feels defeated, but she hasn't cried in a few days so she considers that a success.

She's sitting in the piano room, gently gliding her fingers across the black and white keys, not playing anything in particular, mostly just trying to keep herself busy and her mind occupied.

She's doing a pretty good job of it, until she she's _it_ out of the corner of her eye.

The slightly used copy of Agatha Christie's ' _Murder on the Orient Express'_ sitting just off to the side of her.

 _His_ slightly used copy of Agatha Christie's ' _Murder on the Orient Express.'_

 _Liam._

It's his, she knows it's his. And it sucks because she's trying to get her mind _off_ of Liam and it's really hard to do when there's little pieces of him scattered around everywhere and every little damn thing reminds her of him.

She pushes herself up off the wooden bench, walking over and picking up the paperback in her hands. She can only think back to when she caught him reading it in this very room.

 _"What are you reading?"_

 _"Oh, this right here?" He looks up at her, smiling as soon as he catches her eye. "It's a book."_

 _"Cute," she mutters, sitting herself beside him on the sofa. "I meant_ which _book?"_

 _"Murder on the Orient Express. Agatha Christie."_

 _"Who?"_

 _"Agatha Christie…please tell me you're joking when you say you haven't heard of Agatha Christie."_

 _Her shoulders only rise and fall in response, blank expression washing over her face. "Never heard of her."_

 _"Wow," Liam shakes his head in disbelief._

 _"Can I see it?"_

 _He dog-ears the page that he's on and she happily takes it from his hands, flipping towards the end of the book, skimming through the last few pages quietly, silently. The only sound to be heard is the crackling of the fire and the ruffling of the pages. It's only a few beats later that she closes the book and returns it to it's owner._

 _"They all killed him."_

 _She smirks as his mouth falls open wide at her words. "Spoiler alert!"_

Things were…well, she guesses they weren't really _easier_ back then, but they were _happier._ She thinks they were, at least.

She took him for granted. She sees that now. He was always there for her and she just expected him to… _always_ be there.

It was selfish and she sees it now.

She wishes she saw it sooner. How much he was there for her, how much he meant to her, how much she _loved_ him.

And now he's not here. And he's moving on without her.

Too little, too late.

It's a shame she had to lose so much to be able to see what she had right in front of her.

She only knows this: she can't possibly get him out of her head with everything in this place reminding her of him.

She needs an escape.

She needs to get away.

 _/ /_

"I can't believe you're actually leaving."

The two friends stand outside the manor's front doors, watching as her suitcases are loaded into the black SUV that was preparing to take her to the airport any moment.

Arms crossed across her chest against the stark white blazer she's wearing she says, "It's not forever, Sam."

"I know," Sam affirms. "But what am I gonna do around here without you?"

"That's not my problem." She feels Sam's glare burning into her without even so much looking at him. "What? I'm sure you'll figure it out."

"How long are you going to be gone for?"

"I don't know. I just need to clear my head for a while," she says quietly. "I can't do that here."

"I understand," a small nod from the boy beside her. "I don't understand why you're not taking _me_ , but I get it."

She smiles silently, a small gestures of her thanks.

"I truly hope you find whatever it is you're looking for."

 _/ /_

She finds herself sitting in a café on the busy city street, gazing at the Eiffel Tower just set in the near distance.

The Parisians clump together in groups outside the transparent window, walking off to wherever their destinations led them. Everyone's bundled up in hats and mittens - mid January brings Winter to the French city and its natives are doing everything they possibly can to keep warm.

The change of scenery is nice, she has to admit. She loves Atlanta, it's home, but sometimes a fresh view on things is needed. Especially now, she thinks, since her life's gone to hell and everything.

She sips her vanilla latte, scrolling through news articles and whatnot on her laptop on the small bistro table she's claimed for herself.

She's only been in the city of love for three days when she realizes being alone with her own thoughts isn't as helpful as she thought it'd be.

It honestly might be worse, she thinks.

Yeah, sure, she's in a new surrounding and there might not be materialistic things reminding her of Liam all over the Carrington home in Paris but she's all alone and somehow her mind is racing even more without the distraction of her friends around to help cheer her up.

She doesn't even know what she's doing here. She's accomplishing nothing. Why did she even think this trip was a good idea in the first place?

She really wishes this whole ' _finding yourself_ ' thing was a lot easier.

 _/ /_

It's only when she's flying home two weeks later that she gets a _spark._

It kind of just hits her out of nowhere. Well, maybe not nowhere. But, she does see the wind turbine when they're circling Atlanta awaiting their queue to be clear for landing. _That_ could be hers. It _should_ have been hers. And really, why did she stop running her business when Jeff's revenge plans blew up in everyones faces anyways? She never had a real shot at running her business. Maybe her first mistake was bringing in a partner, maybe she should have been doing it all alone to begin with.

Still…she can't think of a logical reason to why she _stopped._

And then her wheels are turning in her mind about Atlanta's plans to run completely on renewable energy within the next few decades. She could be apart of that - she could make that happen.

Maybe…maybe it was time to try this whole renewable energy thing again.

 _/ /_

"Welcome home," Sam's the first person to greet her when she enters her home. "How was your trip?"

She barely pauses to acknowledge her friend, already half-way up the grand staircase. "Enlightening."

"You have an idea, don't you?"

A shrug, then, "I might."

It's only 24 hours later when she's already figured out just about everything she's needed to: company name, a proposal, a projected path for the next year _and_ how much money she was going to need to make it happen.

Fallon takes in everything in front of her on her computer screen - all the numbers and statistics and plans. It's all kind of exciting. She's forgot what it felt like, how much she loved it.

The only thing left to do is set it all into motion.

 _/ /_

"What are you doing here?"

She's making her way down the stairs when she see's _him._

She didn't think he'd have the guts to show up here, in her home, ever again. But there he is, looking as calm and relaxed as could be. She figures their break up didn't bother him as much as she thought it would. Maybe the two of them never cared about each other as much as they tried to convince themselves they did.

"I'm working with your dad."

Leave it to Blake to keep her ex around their home. Her father knew no bounds. She didn't think he'd go as far to keep Michael around when he knew the hell he'd put her through. Culhane seems so unbothered by anything, he just keeps taking steps towards Blake's office. But something in her gives her the courage to speak up.

"I really hate what you did to me."

He turns around then, only then his defenses are fully on deck. "What _I_ did to you?"

"You had this whole vision of who I was in your head. Or who I should have been. You tried to change me into what you wanted me to be. And I hate it. Because I kept fighting for you. I tried to give this," she gestures between them "a real chance because I let you convince me you were right. I thought all those things you said about me were true. That I was a bad person, that I was a bad friend, that I only cared about myself. But it wasn't true. It wasn't true at all."

"Fallon…"

"No, let me finish," she quiets him and he just stands there. Unmoved, unfazed. "Liam saw me for who I really was. He loved me for everything you couldn't stand me for. And I gave that up for you. I gave _myself_ up for you," she pauses to make sure she's looking him straight in the face for her next sentence. "I only wish in retrospect I I would have seen that sooner so I wouldn't have made the wrong decision about who to be with or lost myself along the way."

 _/ /_

It's the next morning when Liam Ridley wakes up and starts his morning the same way he always does - with a cup of coffee and checking up on the news from the previous day on his phone.

It's mostly the same as it is everyday - politics and local crime.

Nothing exciting.

Until he sees _her._

Well, her name, at least. Screaming out at him from his LCD screen in a recent article posted by Vogue Magazine.

'Fallon Carrington on saying goodbye to Carrington Atlantic and her plans on building her new empire.'

He doesn't think his smile can get any wider.

 _/ /_

"Off to New York?"

"Uh-huh."

"Look at you, Ms. Savvy Business Woman." Fallon can only roll her eyes at Sam's comment. The mimicking of words she heard just a short time ago. She can't deny that it hurts, but she's sure as hell not going to show it. Besides, she's come a long way since that fateful night. "I'm just saying you've accomplished quite a lot in such a short time. It was only a few short months ago you thought up this whole thing."

"Six months," she corrects.

"Can't you just accept a compliment?"

She impatiently shifts her weight from left to right. "Are we done, now?'

"Fine. Go kick ass in The Big Apple."

 _/ /_

"Fallon?"

She hears her name from over her shoulder and _damn_ she'd recognize that voice anywhere, no matter how long it's been.

"Liam," she breathes, and the way it rolls off her tongue just feels _right_. "Hi. What are you doing here? In New York?"

"I'm meeting my agent," he says stepping closer to her, closing the distance between them. "There's….I've got a book being published. We're just…working through all those final details before the big release day."

"Oh. Wow. Congratulations."

He breaths out a simple, "Thanks."

"No, really, Liam. Congratulations. That's…I'm proud of you. That's a huge accomplishment. You've always been a weird book nerd."

"And what about you? I've been hearing all about this new empire you're building from the ground up in the news."

"Well," she shrugs, not able to help the grin on her face. She's proud of what she's done. She hopes he sees that. "That's why I'm here actually. Nothing like hours and hours of board meetings and negotiations to really get your spirits going."

He laughs with her. "How are you?"

"I'm good. I'm…better. A lot better."

"I mean, I can see that," he smiles, and it only causes her lips to curve upwards. "But, I'm really happy to hear it."

"And how are _you_?"

"You know, the same old."

"Ah, the ever mysterious Mr. Ridley," he laughs lightly and the only thing she can focus on is how much she wants to hear that sound again.

"We should catch up when we're both back in Atlanta. You know, if you're up for it."

"That'd be great, I'd love to."

 _/ /_

It's been three weeks since New York and she still hadn't heard from Liam yet.

She's not sure what she expected, really. That he'd jump at the chance to see her again? That he never really intended on seeing her back in Georgia and it was just a formality?

She only knows this: that the disappointment that's been building up inside her for weeks over the fact that Liam hadn't called her confirmed one thing.

Even after all this time she was still head over heels in love with Liam Ridley.

 _/ /_

"Ms. Carrington."

It's Anders who stops her when she steps foot in the manor, already half way up the stairs on the way to her bedroom.

"Yeah?"

"This came for you this morning."

She backtracks her steps, meeting their butler at the bottom of the grand stairwell, taking the small package from his hand. "Who's it from?"

"I'm not entirely sure, it's from Random House publishing. I wasn't aware you were…in the book industry."

She smiles slightly. She knows _exactly_ who's responsible for the package. Fallon makes her way to her room quickly, closing the door behind her. She tears open the yellow envelope and pulls out a book. But not just any book. The bold white font on the dust jacket is jumping out at her.

 _Liam Ridley._

She opens it to the first page, finding it personalized and autographed.

 _You can't spoil the ending for me on this one. Since I did write it and everything. I'm so proud of you for how far you've come._

And damn, there she goes smiling again.

 _/ /_

It's been six weeks since New York when he finally, _finally_ texts her.

 _Dinner tomorrow?_

And _dammit_ because there's this grin that starts spreading against her face and she feels it and she's so glad no one is around to tease her about it because even after all this time without him she still feels _that_ way about him.

 _I'd love to,_ she responds.

The ding on her iPhone comes back immediately and she's glad she's not the only one anticipating a response by the speed of his reply. _Pick you up at 7?_

 _It's a date._

But then she looks at what she's typed. She doesn't want to get her hopes up. What if…what if he's not into her that way anymore? What if he truly just wants to catch up? As friends? All this excitement and nervousness building in her starts to wear down and turn into anxiety that maybe, just maybe she's making this out to more than he thinks it is.

She backspaces until it's blank again, settling on: _Sure. See you then._

But then it's back - this uneasiness and excitement that she's _seeing_ Liam tomorrow night. She hates his ability to turn her into this schoolgirl with a crush. But there were more pressing issues right now.

God, what was she going to _wear_?

 _/ /_

"Why does it look like a tornado ran directly in the path of your room?"

Tossing her latest failed selection onto the floor she mutters, "Goodbye, Sam."

Sam walks in and sits on the edge of her bed, watching his sister-in-law dig through more piles of her clothes. "That nervous for your date?"

"It's not a date."

"Pretty nervous for a non-date, I'd say."

"Are you going to help me pick out something to wear or are you going to sit there and say more useless things?"

He's up off her bed in seconds and turns into her walk-in closet, comes out with his selection and waits as she tries it on. She comes out from her ensuite in a simple black dress and heels. She looks herself up and down in the mirror, silent as ever.

"Well? How'd I do? I did great, didn't I?"

"It'll work."

 _/ /_

"So, hows business?"

"It's great," she begins. "I'm working with the city to make their promise to be running completely on clean energy happen hopefully in a shorter timeframe then they're planning. It's still going to be a while, but if we can cut a few years off their goal, that's still good with me."

Fallon watches the boy in front of her, just sitting there and smiling at her wider and wider by the second. "What?"

"Nothing! It's just…it's good to see you excited about this stuff again. I'm so proud of you, Fallon. I always knew you'd do it."

 _/ /_

"I can walk myself to the door you know," she says, but there he is being all Liam about it and walking to her side of the car to open the door for her and hold his hand out for her to grip onto.

"What kind of gentleman would I be if I let my date walk to her door alone?"

 _Oh,_ she thinks, _s_ o it _is_ a date _._ They've made it to the door and well, she doesn't really know what to say. But, thankfully Liam seems to know just fine.

"I had a really great time tonight."

"Yeah, me too," she smiles at him and his lips curve upward when hers do. "It felt like…"

"Like we hadn't even spent anytime apart?"

And he's still able to finish her sentences.

"Something like that." She sure as hell isn't going to be the one who leans in, so she just settles on muttering, "Well, Liam, thank you for dinner. Goodnight," before turning on her heel towards her home.

But then his arm's on her wrist spinning her back around towards him and his lips are on hers and her mouth is moving against his and everything just feels _right._

He pulls away after a minute, her mind still in shock and he's just looking at her _that_ way.

"You didn't seriously think I was going to let you walk away that easily this time, did you?"

She just presses her lips back against his and hopes that answers his question.

 _/ /_

She hears him walk in behind her and she already knows what he's up to before he's started.

"I'm working."

He wraps his arms around her from behind, her sitting up straight at her desk typing away furiously on her laptop. He starts peppering kisses up her neck, and turns her swivel chair around so she's facing him now.

"You've been working for hours," he says, continuing to attack her neck with soft little kisses.

She sighs into it, because _damn_ it does feel good but she tries her hardest to ignore it. "And these emails aren't going to answer themselves."

His lips trail lower and lower, leaving little butterfly kisses against her décolletage and she know's she two seconds away from giving in to him. "Take a break."

"Liam," she sighs against him. She tries her hardest to sound strong but it comes out weak and soft and she knows she's lost the battle. "Fine. A short break."

She closes the laptop and pushes it off to the side - emails long forgotten as she crashes her lips against his.

 _/ /_

When Liam Ridley told his girlfriend he's be over later in the night for a quiet date night in - movies and some takeout, maybe - he figured he'd be walking into just that - quiet. Not Fallon aggressively yelling into her phone on a business call. Or, what he assumers is a business call.

But it's exactly what he walked into.

"No, you listen to me. You _will_ make a commitment to my company and my plans to turn major cities into using clean energy."

He can't hear the response from the other end of the phone call, so he just looks at her fondly. He loved this side of her. Aggressive and firm, not taking no for an answer. _Wait,_ he stops and replays his train of thoughts. He just..he said loved, didn't he? It seemed fast, to already be throwing that word around again. But, he thinks…did he ever really fall _out_ of love with her?

"Yeah, call me back when you've come to your senses."

Nope, he decides. He's been in love with her all along.

"Sorry about that. You'd think saving the planet would be a big enough sell for them."

She saunters her way over to the boy standing in her bedroom doorway to kiss him hello. "I ordered us some pizza for dinner. What movie did you want to watch?"

He follows behind her back into her room, muttering, "Your choice, Fal."

They're halfway through Legally Blonde when he musters up the courage to tell her.

They're curled up against her bed frame, her soft sheets tangled around them with both their figures resting comfortably against the mount of pillows she keeps around. Fallon's got her head resting against his chest and his right arm curves underneath her, holding her close by the waist.

"I love you, you know."

"I know." He feels her lips turn upward against the thin fabric of his t-shirt. She doesn't move, just buries herself further into his arms and quietly says, "I love you, too."

 _/ /_

Morning finds the Carrington Manor basked in a soft glow of sunlight.

Soft and calm, peaceful.

The complete opposite of what's to be found in Fallon Carrington's bedroom.

Liam's frantic, searching her room up and down for his clothes. "I am _so_ going to be late to my meeting."

"It was your idea to stay in bed!"

He spots his shirt in a clump near the bottom of her windows, throwing it on over his head. "I didn't hear you complaining!"

"Yeah, but I don't have a meeting to be at in ten minutes!"

"Where are my shoes?"

"Over there," she points towards her the entryway to her closet.

He ties them quickly, fastening the button on his jeans, grabbing his wallet and quickly makes his way out of her bedroom.

"Wait, wait! Liam!" She calls out, running after him, catching him just in time before he descends down the stairs. "Don't forget your phone!"

"Thanks, babe." Liam turns around and hurriedly grabs the device from his girlfriends grip, leaning in to give her a quick kiss on her mouth. "I'll be home soon, okay?"

It's not until her boyfriend's clear from her view that Kirby makes her presence known.

"Did he stay the night?"

Fallon jumps, "Jesus, Kirby!"

Kirby's think Australian accent fills the hallway once more. "Well?"

"Well, what?"

"Did Liam spend the night?"

"I don't see how that's any of your business."

"I'm just asking." The girl with copper hair moves her hand up in defense quickly. "You've been different since he's been back around these past few weeks."

"Different how?"

"I don't know. Happier?" Silene surrounds the two girls. "I guess what I'm trying to say is, I'm glad that you two found your way back to each other. Even if you took a little detour."

 _/ /_

He finds her sitting on the edge of her bed, stoic and silent. She doesn't even so much as greet him or look in his direction when he swings her door wide open.

It worries him.

"Fal?"

She looks up at the gentle tone of his voice and that's when he notices.

The few stray tears making their way down her pale face.

He makes his way over to her, grabbing her hand and interlacing their finger. He cups her face gently and turns her to face him, wiping away the tear that trails slowly down her face. "What's wrong?"

"I didn't get the contract. They didn't want to work with me. Turns out, they're not ready to make a commitment to solar and wind power yet."

"Fal." Liam strokes the side of her face with his thumb, hoping it gives her all the comfort she needs. "It's okay to not win them all. You're not going to win them all."

"It's just…"

"You can tell me, it's okay."

"This is the first big thing I've lost since starting this company back up." He nods, a sign that he's with her, he's listening. "I just don't want you to think I'm moving backwards or something."

"Moving backwards?"

"Maybe. I don't know. I just don't want you to think I'm giving up. Or losing my way again."

"Giving up? Losing your way? Babe, you're _killing_ it. You're doing everything but give up. This is just a minor setback. One major city refusing to go green does not mean every major city is going to be against your cause."

She nods against his soft hand. "I guess you're right."

"It's okay to be insecure sometimes, you know. I know you don't exactly love showing it, but I'm here for you, okay? Always."

 _/ /_

She feels him start to stir under their fluffy white sheets before the words escape his mouth, "What time is it?"

"A little after 8."

"Are you seriously already on your phone?" Fallon feels his eyes on her, looking her up and down in disbelief. "It's _Saturday."_

She shrugs, focus entirely on her cell phone. "Someone has to work."

He feigns hurt, "Excuse me, I work."

"Yeah, sure, whatever."

The only sound that can be heard is the _tick tick tick_ of Fallon typing away vigorously on her iPhone for a few moments before Liam's had enough.

"Put the phone away," he mutters, reaching out to grab the device in his palm.

"Wait, wait, wait," she slaps his hand away gently and keeps her grip firm on her phone, pulling it right back into her line of focus. "Oh my god."

"Are you going to elaborate?"

"It's an email from Fast Company. They want to feature me on their cover."

He leans over to kiss her cheek, "Fal, that's amazing."

She's silent for a moment, watching how he gazes at her with so much love in his eyes. She's even surprised how quiet her tone is when she says, "Thank you."

He reaches over to tuck a stay piece of hair behind her ear, "For what?"

"For always believing in me, even when I didn't believe in myself."

He pulls her further down into the sheets, covering his mouth with hers and she can't help but grin into it…unable to stop her mind from thinking about where she is in her life.

A year ago she could barely get herself out of bed, unsure of who she was or where she was even heading.

And now?

Now she's got a successful business. And sure, there's been some hurdles and she has no doubt that there will be a million more to come, but she did it and she did it all on her own on top of it all.

She's got _Liam._

Something she never thought would be possible for her - a stable relationship full of trust and honesty and appreciation and _love_ for one another.

Maybe, she thinks…

Maybe she really can have everything she's ever dreamed of.


End file.
